The Lethal Legion is the name of seven teams of

fictional characters In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...

appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Comics'' in ...

Publication history

The first version of the Lethal Legion appeared in '' The Avengers'' #78 (Jul. 1970). The second version of the Lethal Legion appeared in ''Avengers'' #164 (Oct. 1977) The third version in ''

West Coast Avengers The West Coast Avengers is a fictional group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team first appeared in ''The West Coast Avengers'' #1 (Sept. 1984), created by Roger Stern and Bob Hall. It was the fi ...

'' vol. 2, #1 (Oct. 1985). The fourth version appeared in ''Marvel Age Annual'' #1 (1985). The fifth version of the Lethal Legion appeared in ''Avengers West Coast'' #98 (Sep. 1993) The sixth version of the Lethal Legion appeared in the limited series ''Dark Reign: Lethal Legion'' #1 (Aug. 2009).

History

Grim Reaper's Lethal Legion

The original Lethal Legion are formed by the villain

Grim Reaper Death is frequently imagined as a personified force. In some mythologies, a character known as the Grim Reaper (usually depicted as a berobed skeleton wielding a scythe) causes the victim's death by coming to collect that person's soul. Other b ...

(the brother of Avenger

Wonder Man Wonder Man (Simon Williams) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, he first appeared in '' The Avengers'' #9 (October 1964). The c ...

) and consisted of Man-Ape, Power Man,

Living Laser The Living Laser (Arthur Parks) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Don Heck, the character made his first appearance in '' The Avengers'' #34 (Nov. 1966). He would become a recur ...

, and

Swordsman Swordsmanship or sword fighting refers to the skills and techniques used in combat and training with any type of sword. The term is modern, and as such was mainly used to refer to smallsword fencing, but by extension it can also be applied to an ...

. Man-Ape attacks Captain America, but is beaten back by the Avengers. However, he captures the

Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been ...

's girlfriend Monica binding her hand and foot with metal clamps. Black Panther is lured into a trap by Man-Ape, and despite getting past him he is knocked out by an exploding dummy of Monica. Black Panther is chained and with Man-Ape, he meets the other members of the Lethal Legion. Grim Reaper dispatched the Lethal Legion members to different locations to meet the Avengers. Power Man and Swordsman were sent to the water main below

Avengers Mansion Avengers Mansion is a fictional building appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It has traditionally been the base of the Avengers. The enormous, city block-sized building is located at 890 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan, New ...

, Living Laser and Man-Ape were sent to the nearby power station, and Grim Reaper seemingly departed to

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...

. Black Panther broke free and contacted the Avengers to warn them about the Lethal Legion's plot. Grim Reaper returns and uses the knockout gas in his scythe to knock out Black Panther while revealing that he planned to have the Avengers lured to the locations of which Black Panther knew about. While the other members of the Lethal Legion defeat the different Avengers, Vision defeats Power Man (who had been sent to capture him at Avengers Mansion). He disguises himself as Power Man and Power Man as him and takes him to the base. The Lethal Legion places the Avengers in an hourglass container and then fills it with deadly gas. When "Power Man" arrived with "Vision," Grim Reaper detected the brain patterns of Wonder Man and shattered the hourglass to save Vision's life only to realize that the vision in the hourglass was actually Power Man. At that point, Vision aided the Avengers into defeating the Lethal Legion who are handed over to the authorities.

Count Nefaria's Lethal Legion

A second version, formed by European villain

Count Nefaria Count Luchino Nefaria is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Publication history The character first appears in '' The Avengers'' #13 (February 1965), and was created by Stan Lee and Don Heck. Fictiona ...

reappears in the title, composed of Living Laser,

Whirlwind A whirlwind is a weather phenomenon in which a vortex of wind (a vertically oriented rotating column of air) forms due to instabilities and turbulence created by heating and flow (current) gradients. Whirlwinds occur all over the world and i ...

and Power Man. He magnifies their powers, but is revealed to be a manipulative ploy to steal their magnified powers in a failed bid to destroy the Avengers. The depowered villains are sent to prison.

Grim Reaper's second Lethal Legion

The Grim Reaper returns in the title ''

'', leading a third version against the superhero team consisting of

Black Talon Black Talon is a brand of hollow-point pistol and rifle ammunition introduced in 1991 by Winchester, primarily intended for law enforcement and personal defense use. Black Talon rounds were known for the unique construction of the bullet and its ...

(Barone), Goliath, Man-Ape,

Nekra Nekra is a mutant supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Steve Gerber and Ross Andru for the 1973 comic book ''Shanna the She-Devil''. She is a mutant caused by an atomic explosion at ...

, and Ultron-12. Grim Reaper has Ultron lead a squadron of robots to spring Goliath from a compound that he is imprisoned in. When Goliath is freed by Man-Ape, the three villains work together to take out the Avengers as Ultron-12 states that he has his own plans for Wonder Man. The three villains escape with an unconscious Henry Pym and Wonder Man. Hawkeye figures out that Grim Reaper is behind this. The three villains meet up with Grim Reaper. Internal squabbling and personal agendas overtake the villains and they are defeated and scattered.

Porcupine's Lethal Legion

A fourth version appears in the title ''

Marvel Age ''Marvel Age'' was a promotional comic book-sized magazine from Marvel Comics published from 1983 to 1994. Basically a comic-length edition of the Bullpen Bulletins page, ''Marvel Age'' contained previews of upcoming Marvel comics, as well as in ...

''. They were led by the Porcupine and consisted of

Attuma Attuma is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is an Atlantean nomadic warlord who is usually depicted as an enemy of Namor the Sub-Mariner, and is the father of the superhero Andromeda. He believes he ...

Batroc the Leaper Georges Batroc the Leaper (french: Batroc le Sauteur) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in ''Tales of Suspense' ...

, Bulldozer, Black Tiger, Kurr'fri of the Saurians, Gorilla-Man (Nagan), Piledriver, Sabretooth,

Thundra Thundra is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is often aligned with the Fantastic Four. She is a powerful, red haired, amazon-like warrior, or Femizon, from a matriarchal, technologically a ...

Trapster Trapster (Peter Petruski), also known as Paste-Pot Pete, is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Publication history The character is one of the first supervillains who became active during the "Silver Ag ...

Unicorn The unicorn is a legendary creature that has been described since antiquity as a beast with a single large, pointed, spiraling horn projecting from its forehead. In European literature and art, the unicorn has for the last thousand years o ...

, Whirlwind, and Wrecker. The Lethal Legion tracked down and battle Captain America who is aided by several other Marvel heroes. Their battle with the superheroes was witnessed by the

Beyonder The Beyonder () is a fictional cosmic entity appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Jim Shooter and artist Mike Zeck, the Beyonder first appeared in ''Secret Wars'' #1 (May 1984) as an unseen, self-procla ...

. The outcome of the battle was not shown, but it is assumed that the heroes won.

Satannish's Lethal Legion

In the title ''Avengers West Coast'' the demon

Satannish Satannish is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Publication history Satannish first appeared in ''Doctor Strange (comic book), Doctor Strange'' #174 and was created by Roy Thomas and Gene Colan. F ...

creates another version using the souls of four

infamous Infamous may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Infamous'' (2006 film), an American drama film * ''Infamous'' (2020 film), an American crime thriller film * "Infamous", an episode of ''Lego Ninjago: Masters of Spinj ...

historical killers that were found in

Mephisto Mephisto or Mephistopheles is one of the chief demons of German literary tradition. Mephisto or Mephistopheles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Méphisto'', a 1931 French film * Mephisto (1981 film), ''Mephisto'' (1981 film), a German- ...

's section of Hell. They have been given powers along with Hangman and the group battle the renamed ''Avengers West Coast''. The group consisted of Axe of Violence (a demonically-enhanced version of

Lizzie Borden Lizzie Andrew Borden (July 19, 1860 – June 1, 1927) was an American woman tried and acquitted of the August 4, 1892 axe murders of her father and stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts. No one else was charged in the murders, and despite ost ...

with an axe replacing one hand), Coldsteel (a demonically-enhanced version of Soviet leader

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...

, now an 8 ft. giant with superhuman strength), Cyana (a demonically-enhanced version of Lucrezia Borgia with poisoned claws), and Zyklon (a demonically-enhanced version of Nazi official

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...

who can belch deadly gas fumes from his mouth). This incarnation eventually lost their powers and their souls were destroyed during the struggle between Mephisto and Satannish.

Grim Reaper's third Lethal Legion

A new version of the Lethal Legion appears during the " Dark Reign" storyline in the three-issue limited series ''Dark Reign: Lethal Legion''. The Grim Reaper (now aided by his brother Wonder Man) recruits villains to oppose criminal mastermind

Norman Osborn Norman Osborn is a fictional character, fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character, created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, first appeared in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #14 (July ...

. Absorbing Man, Grey Gargoyle, Mister Hyde, and Tiger Shark later reformed the Lethal Legion and end up fighting the Avengers.

Challenger's Lethal Legion

An alien version of the Lethal Legion was formed by Grandmaster to go up against Challenger's Black Order in a contest where Earth is the battlefield and they had to collect the Pyramoids. While the Blood Brothers, Mentacle, and Metal Master II faced off against

Black Dwarf A black dwarf is a theoretical stellar remnant, specifically a white dwarf that has cooled sufficiently to no longer emit significant heat or light. Because the time required for a white dwarf to reach this state is calculated to be longer th ...

, Black Swan, and Supergiant's psychic projection in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Captain Glory, Drall, and Ferene the Other faced off against Corvus Glaive,

Ebony Maw Ebony Maw is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a prominent member of the Black Order, a team of aliens who work for Thanos. The character has made several appearances in media, such as a ...

, and

Proxima Midnight Proxima Midnight is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is a prominent member of the Black Order, a team of aliens who work for Thanos. Created by writer Jonathan Hickman, she first appeared ...

in Cusco,

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

. Both of these confrontations were interrupted by the Avengers. Each of its members were revealed to have been saved from their approaching deaths in exchange that they partake in his contest against Challenger. When Challenger reveals his secret player in the form of a resurrected Hulk, most of the Lethal Legion are defeated with Hulk breaking Captain Glory's spine and presumably killing Mentacle. After the contest is ended by the Avengers, the Lethal Legion regrouped and fled to

Knowhere Knowhere (pronounced "no where") is a fictional location appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, and related media. It is depicted as the enormous severed head of an ancient celestial being, which serves as an interdimension ...

. As they have nowhere to return to after each one's near-death experience, the Lethal Legion decides to stay together and see what they can accomplish.

Count Nefaria's second Lethal Legion

Count Nefaria forms another version of the Lethal Legion which now consists of Grey Gargoyle, Living Laser, and Whirlwind. The group raids a Project Pegasus facility to look for the Catalyst so that Count Nefaria can regain his powers. He revealed to the scientist that mentioned it was relocated that he got a copy of the information from Chameleon as the scientist knows the Catalyst's full potential. Count Nefaria kills the scientist with his abilities so that he won't tell anyone how to stop him. When Whirlwind and Living Laser stated to Count Nefaria that he should be resting, Count Nefaria stated that he needed the exercise. At Empire State University, Dr. Curt Connors reveals the Catalyst to the crowd when the Lethal Legion attacks. While Grey Gargoyle and Whirlwind attack the people present, Living Laser helps Count Nefaria to operate the Catalyst. Spider-Man shows up and has a hard time fighting them due to the fact that his mind was focused on what a revived

Sin-Eater A sin-eater is a person who consumes a ritual meal in order to spiritually take on the sins of a deceased person. The food was believed to absorb the sins of a recently dead person, thus absolving the soul of the person. Sin-eaters, as a cons ...

did to Overdrive. Sin-Eater shows up and starts using the same gun he used on Overdrive on Whirlwind and Grey Gargoyle while taking their powers. Immobilizing Spider-Man with Grey Gargoyle's powers, Sin-Eater proceeded to do the same thing to Living Laser and Count Nefaria. All four of them were sent to Ravencroft where they started to act like model inmates. Norah Winters was allowed by Norman Osborn to interview them about Sin-Eater. As a side-effect of Sin-Eater's suicide upon copying

Madame Web Madame Web (Cassandra Webb) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She first appeared in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #210, published November 1980, and was created by writer Denny O'Neil and artist ...

's precognition revealed that Kindred was using them, the Lethal Legion regained their sins and are among the villains that went on a rampage.

Membership

Other versions

Heroes Reborn

In the '' Heroes Reborn'' reality, the Lethal Legion was formed by Enchantress and consisted of

Executioner An executioner, also known as a hangman or headsman, is an official who executes a sentence of capital punishment on a legally condemned person. Scope and job The executioner was usually presented with a warrant authorising or order ...

Scarlet Witch Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. Her first appearance was in ''The X-Men'' #4 (March 1964 ...

, Ultron-5, and

The Lethal Legion is later betrayed by Loki who takes the Gamma Core's energy for himself.''Avengers'' Vol. 2 #8. Marvel Comics.

In other media

Television

The Lethal Legion appears in ''

The Super Hero Squad Show ''The Super Hero Squad Show'' is an American superhero animated series produced by Marvel Animation. It is based on the Marvel Super Hero Squad action figure line from Hasbro, which portray the Avengers, the X-Men, and various other characters ...

''. This version of the group was founded and led by Doctor Doom and consists of the

Abomination Abomination may refer to: * Abomination (Bible), covering Biblical references **Abomination (Judaism) *Abomination (character) The Abomination is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The original ...

MODOK MODOK (also written as M.O.D.O.K.; an acronym for Mental/Mobile/Mechanized Organism Designed Only for Killing) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first MODOK is George Tarleton, a former e ...

Mole Man The Mole Man (Harvey Rupert Elder) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Mole Man is a recurring foe of the Fantastic Four and was the first villain they ever faced. His schemes usually consist o ...

Fin Fang Foom Fin Fang Foom is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been depicted as an extraterrestrial creature resembling a dragon. The character first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #89 (cover ...

Megataur This article lists the known monsters in Marvel Comics. History In the earlier parts of Marvel Comics, issues such as ''Journey into Mystery'', ''Strange Tales'', '' Tales of Suspense'', and ''Tales to Astonish'' would detail stories of its diffe ...

, Tricephalous, Manoo, Klaw,

Toad Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands. A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scient ...

Melter The Melter is the name of three fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The original Melter, Bruno Horgan, first appeared in Tales of Suspense #47 (Nov. 1963). Publication history The character debuted ...

, the Wrecking Crew, Sabretooth, the Juggernaut, Pyro,

, Zzzax, Egghead, the Ringmaster, Paste Pot Pete, Mystique, the

Crimson Dynamo Crimson Dynamo (Russian: Багровое Динамо, '; also Красное Динамо (Krasnoe Dinamo)) is the name of several fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics who have all been powered ar ...

, and

. Additionally,

Songbird A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5000 ...

worked undercover in the Lethal Legion as Screaming Mimi. Doom forms the group to help him in his quest to collect the Infinity Fractals and rebuild the Infinity Sword. In season two, Molecule Man and Volcana join the Lethal Legion to help break Doom out of the

Vault Vault may refer to: * Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards Architecture * Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space * Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored * Burial vault (enclosure ...

and combat

Thanos Thanos is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He was created by writer-artist Jim Starlin, and first appeared in '' The Invincible Iron Man'' #55 ( cover date February 1973). An Eternal– Deviant w ...

and the Dark Surfer.

Video games

*The Lethal Legion appears in '' Marvel Super Hero Squad''. *The Lethal Legion appears in ''

Lego Marvel Super Heroes ''Lego Marvel Super Heroes'' is a 2013 Lego-themed action-adventure video game developed by Traveller's Tales and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft W ...

''. This version of the group is co-led by Doctor Doom, Loki, and

Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...

. *The Lethal Legion appears in ''

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy ''Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy'' is a 2021 action-adventure game developed by Eidos-Montréal and published by Square Enix's Square Enix Europe, European subsidiary. Based on the Marvel Comics superhero team Guardians of the Galaxy (2008 team ...

''. This version of the group is composed of bounty hunters led by Captain Glory and consists of the Blood Brothers.

Publication history

History

Grim Reaper's Lethal Legion

Count Nefaria's Lethal Legion

Grim Reaper's second Lethal Legion

Porcupine's Lethal Legion

Satannish's Lethal Legion

Grim Reaper's third Lethal Legion

Challenger's Lethal Legion

Count Nefaria's second Lethal Legion

Membership

Other versions

Heroes Reborn

In other media

Television

Video games

Footnotes

External links